Eknath Shinde govt may have survived after SC verdict but lost moral right to continue

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Jayant Patil said that Eknath Shinde government in Maharashtra may have survived after the Supreme Court verdict but has lost the moral right to continue.

After the top court gave its judgment on the political crisis that led to the fall of the three-party Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government following the Eknath Shinde faction’s rebellion last year. Uddhav Thackeray’s group, NCP and Congress are partners of MVA. Though the Shinde government survived, it has lost the moral right to remain in power because the court has explained how all the decisions taken by (the then) governor were wrong, said the NCP state chief.

Patil said that now the onus is on the Assembly Speaker to work within the framework of the points mentioned by the top court. The speaker has to decide at the earliest as the Supreme Court has put the ball in his court and he cannot procrastinate further, he said. With this verdict, the top court has explained to the people that the episode that had taken place in Maharashtra was unconstitutional and illegal, he said.

Earlier in the day, the apex court held that it cannot restore the then MVA government led by Uddhav Thackeray as he resigned without facing the floor test in June last year.